"Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need." Hebrews 4:14-16

“Attention passengers: please hold on to the handrails. The transit is about to be in motion.” I don’t know about you, but for me, when I hear that, I instantly think, “Can I make it without holding on?” The Christian life for the early Jewish Christians was not easy. As you read the book of Hebrews, the author gives direction through encouragement and truth about why they should not turn back. He wraps up the letter by saying, “I appeal to you, brothers, bear with my word of exhortation, for I have written to you briefly” (Hebrews 13:22).

Richard Phillips says, “Exhort his reader he does, often sternly and always urgently, but he also is careful to explain the reasons for his commands, as well as to offer the resources to do them.”

Here in chapter four, God's Word instructs us to hold on firmly, “Let us hold fast our confession.” Don't lose grip. The Bible never says our Christian walk will be easy. It actually says the opposite. Here we have the command to hold tightly to our confession. Hold tightly to what we believe. Phillips says, “Christians, of course, acknowledge earthy blessings and enjoy them in good measure. But we are people who have set our hearts on the heavenly rest. We have stepped onto the spiritual battleground, with enemies like the flesh, the world, and the devil. We accept that this is the time of our labor, the time of sacrifice, and willing self-denial for the sake of our discipleship to Christ.”

The first fifteen or so years of ministry for me were spent focusing on students. It was something I immensely enjoyed. I was one of those guys who had no dreams of becoming a senior pastor. I loved the calling. Camp was always a big part of our ministry. We would take kids to winter camps and summer camps every year. One of my fond memories was tug-of-war. We would find the muddiest hole at the camp, and we would fill it with water. I have some wonderful pictures in my office of that event over the years. After a while, we would put the rope down, and it would just become a wonderful mess of mud. Thinking of the rope, it was muddy and wet. To grip that thing, you would have to give all the grip strength you had. But tug-of-war was never by yourself. It wasn’t one person on one end of the rope. It was a team. It's an awful thought to think of holding that rope all by yourself. No, there was a group of people in front of you and behind you, pulling together in one accord. I believe this to be the picture here in Hebrews chapter four. It doesn't say, “YOU, hold the rope.” The common theme throughout this book appears again. It says, “Let US hold the rope.” And here again, the author shows us the strength to be able to do this.

The Great High Priest

"Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession." Hebrews 4:14

How do we hold on? Verse fourteen tells us that because of Jesus, the High Priest, we can hold on. The Jewish Christians reading this would automatically know the reference to the high priest. Once a year, the Jewish high priest would symbolically bring the people's sins before the Holy of Holies. Once a year, on the Day of Atonement, blood was sprinkled on the mercy seat to atone for the sins of the people. The high priest would first have to make a sacrifice for himself. Then the high priest would enter the Holy of Holies. As John MacArthur says, “The process never ended, never completed, because the priesthood was not perfect and the sacrifices were not perfect.” Here, the author of Hebrews is saying that Jesus is the Great High Priest. Once and for all, by His blood we have received forgiveness of sin. Hebrews 9:12 says, "He entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats and calves but by means of his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption." The blood of goats never takes away sin (Hebrews 10:4). All this was pointing to Jesus, that through His blood, as Acts 20:28 tells us, He has obtained the church.

What is also so encouraging is that Jesus, unlike the high priest in the Old Testament, does not need to leave. He is holy and sinless and stays at the right hand of the Father. He continually intercedes for us. The process of salvation is complete, once and for all, for those who will come and receive Jesus as their Savior. Those who confess their sins and believe in the work of Jesus Christ on the cross, shall be saved. The work is done, complete, it is finished. We may hold on to our confession because Christ has saved us. Religion says work, and you may be saved. The Bible says that because of the work of the cross, we may receive salvation.

The Sympathizing Savior

"For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin." Hebrews 4:15

The author of Hebrews says Jesus is able to sympathize with our weaknesses. John MacArthur writes, “His divinity did not prevent Him from experiencing our feelings, our emotions, our temptations, our pain.” Kent Hughes remarks, “Jesus made like his brothers in every respect—not an almost man, though he was sinless—he had a real human body, mind, and emotions with their inherent weaknesses. He was ignorant and was taught. He learned to walk—he lived with a human body, mind, and soul—with all their limitations except for sin.”

The Personal God came down, yet never sinned. R. Albert Mohler, Jr. said, “Jesus never crossed the line. He was tempted in every respect that we have been tempted, but never once did He permit that temptation to become sin in His heart, in His thoughts, or in His actions. Thus, temptation that resists or rejects sin falls short of sin, while temptation that gives over to sin is sin. He always resisted.”

Looking at this truth brings to mind a phrase, “You wouldn’t understand because you haven’t gone through what I have.” Over the years of being a pastor, I've seen many people connect in the church because they have the same experiences. I've watched older ladies care for younger women. I've seen older men care for and shepherd young men. Their experiences helped them connect and care. I believe this verse is showing us that Jesus connects with us. He knows our struggles. He isn’t far off. He cares.

Let Us Confidently Come

"Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need." Hebrews 4:16

Let us now come before the Great Holy God with confidence, without hesitation, because of our Great High Priest. I think the Jewish Christians would understand this idea better than those of us living in America. The idea of going before the Holy God should be a terrifying thought. The all-knowing, all-powerful God, who are we to stand before Him? It should humble us. Yet, with that thought in mind, because of Jesus, we may draw near with confidence. Kent Hughes says it so well, “The writer believes Jesus' high priestly ministry on behalf of the believers, correctly understood and implicitly believed, would be a great anchor in the coming storms.”

Hughes goes on to say, “We receive mercy—for our past failures—and grace to meet our present and future needs. We receive the full heart of God as He mercifully meets us in our sins and misery—and heals us. Then we receive the full hand of God's grace—His unmerited favor and loving regard that just keeps coming and coming.”

Jesus personally knows the difficulty; He is calling us to turn to Him, the Intercessor for us. Phillips asks, “What does it mean to approach? It means to come to God in prayer on the basis of Christ's high priestly ministry, that is, His propitiating sacrifice and present intercession.” I believe this is so important to holding firmly on to our confession. We must learn to come and pray. Again, I point out that it doesn’t say let you pray; it says, “Let us.” That rope that we grab onto is muddy and wet. We don’t grab it alone. We, as the church, come together before the throne. Together, we draw near. 

Many years ago, I was at a family camp and heard a man by the name of Tom Harmon speak. He very much challenged me in the idea of what prayer looks like. I'll never forget it and use it all the time. He listed verses in the New Testament on prayer and focused on the word in each of those passages that described how the person was praying. Here’s the list:

I was so challenged by how the New Testament describes prayer. I believe this is what it looks like for us to confidently and boldly pray. As I started to study this verse in Hebrews, I wondered how many times the Bible addresses corporate prayer, praying together. Here is what I found:

"I appeal to you, brothers, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to strive together with me in your prayers to God on my behalf.” Romans 15:30

"All these with one accord were devoting themselves to prayer, together with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and his brothers."Acts 1:14

"And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers." Acts 2:42

"Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working." James 5:16

"And when they heard it, they lifted their voices together to God and said, 'Sovereign Lord, who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and everything in them.’" Acts 4:24

"Praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints." Ephesians 6:18

"We give thanks to God always for all of you, constantly mentioning you in our prayers." 1 Thessalonians 1:2

"That together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ." Romans 15:6

So, I've added a new list to my biblical description of prayer:

Even when Jesus gives us the perfect example of how to pray, He starts by saying, “Our Father in heaven...”

The original receivers of the letter of Hebrews' grip strength was fading. The Word appealed to them and encouraged them in the true hope they have in the High Priest, Jesus Christ. How did He tell them to hold on? By coming together and praying. You may be reading this and, if you are honest, you may say, “I just don’t understand prayer.” In the book “Spiritual Leadership,”  J. Oswald Sanders says, “To try to explain exactly how prayer works, and you will quickly run against some very difficult puzzles. But people who are skeptical of prayer’s validity and power are usually those who do not practice it seriously or fail to obey when God reveals His will. We cannot learn about prayer except by praying.”

May we be challenged with the call to pray corporately, to pray in a group for one another, to pray in unity throughout the week. Let me challenge you practically with what that looks like. I believe that, biblically, it looks like this: before and after the gathering of the church on Sunday, people should gather to pray in connection with one another. Then, after the gathering, there isn’t a rush to leave, but a time to pray. Praying together can also be a purposeful plan to lift each other up in prayer throughout the week. It will mean spontaneously being moved by the Spirit to pray for someone and stopping then to pray. It will be earnestly, fervently, and diligently holding the rope together. It will be to see your brother or sister in a time of weakness, struggling to hold the rope, and you stand right next to them, praying for them and encouraging them. It will be telling them that you are confidently bringing them before the Lord.

Let us pray for one another. So many people miss out on this. This is something I have seen the church that I pastor grow in. I watch as the church has grown into a place where it is common to see people praying together. Are you missing out on this?

Let us firmly hold on to the confession of our faith. How? By being the Church together, holding the rope, struggling together in prayer, lifting one another up to the Almighty God.

Questions for personal study or group discussion: